Iran

Royal Mosque, Isfahan 1611-1629 vaulting in iwan

Mosque of the Imam nicely the pattern of radiating lines characterizing this half dome crown in one of the iwans of the Royal Mosque courtyard.

Friday mosque, Isfahan, Iran late 11-12th C. courtyard iwan

Not covered by simple pointed barrel vaults, but are given a muqarnas vault/ enormous size of the individual muqarnas corbels

Friday Mosque, Yazd, Iran begun 1325 pishtaq

Ordinarily, the corbels of a Persian muqarnas vault are not so huge as in the Friday Mosque of Isfahan. But note another important distinction between this Persian monument and its Turkish counterparts. The pishtaq is now framed by a Persian arch, NOT a steeply pitched triangle, as we saw in Seljuq and Ottoman buildings

Royal mosque,Isfahan 1611-1629

'Mosque of the Imam' Like the earlier Friday Mosque of Isfahan, the Royal Mosque is also of the type with a central courtyard faced in the middle of each side by a great vaulted iwan.

Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, Isfahan, Iran 1603-1619

Blue Mosque. unusual for not having a minaret.served harem of Shah Abbas the Great

Mausolea twin mausolea, Kharraghan, Iran 1067-68 and 1093

Both of these domed mausolea were constructed of normal brick coursing, but then covered over with a sheath of decorative brickwork.

Friday Mosque,Yazd, Iran begun 1325

Ilkhanid Dynasty, Mongol rulers of Persia. Its extremely tall and slender pishtaq and flanking minarets are sometimes noted as stylistic features of the period of the 14th century

Royal Mosque, Isfahan 1611-1629 pishtaq muqarnas

In Iran it is usual for a pair of minarets to be placed at the flanks of the main entrance. This was something the Seljuq Turks appropriated from them, hence the paired minarets flanking Seljuq madrasas,

Mausolea tomb towers, Kharraghan,Iran 1067-68 and 1093 brick arabesque

This kind of brick arabesque work became a specialty in Persian and Central Asian buildings.

Lotfollah mosque, Isfahan, Iran 1603-1619 dome and drum

Unlike an Ottoman mosque, which was more likely to support its dome on pendentives, this dome rests on a variant of the two-tiered squinch system we had first seen at the much earlier Friday Mosque of Isfahan.

Friday mosque plan, Isfahan, Iran late 11-12th C.

central courtyard having 4 large Iwans

Friday mosque, Isfahan, Iran late 11-12th C. muqarnas corbels

corbels are inside the iwans

Lotfollah mosque, Isfahan, Iran 1603-1619 muqarnas vault

crowning vault of the pishtaq. Note that pishtaq,framed by a Persian arch. consistent marked contrast between Persian and Ottoman or Moorish/Maghrebi design.

Gunbad-i-Qabus tomb tower, Gorgan, Iran 1006-1007

derives its interest less from decorative brick work, than from the flanges that give it iits 10-point star shape

Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, Isfahan, Iran 1603-1619 interior

in the hallway next to the prayer hall. Its use of ceramic tile to cover the entire interior surface is typical of Iranian decorative procedure.

Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, Isfahan, Iran 1603-1619

it is unusual for not having a minaret

Friday mosque, Isfahan, Iran late 11-12th C.

multitude of domes crowning the interior spaces.

Gur-i-Emir, Samarqand, Uzbekistan, ca 1400-1404

originally built for madrasa but converted into the conqueror Tamerlane.

Gur-i-emir plan, Samarqand, Uzbekistan,1400-1404

originally built for madrasa but converted into the conqueror Tamerlane.

Lotfollah mosque, Isfahan, Iran 1603-1619 view into dome

pattern of radiating ogival lozenges is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful dome decorations in the Islamic world.

Friday mosque, Isfahan, Iran late 11-12th C. South dome

the double-tiered squinch system

Friday mosque, Isfahan, Iran late 11-12th C. arcade

two ties of arcades. instead of stone columns, segments extending down to the ground. colorful ceramic tile work

Royal Mosque, Isfahan 1611-1629 southern iwan

unlike the iwans in a number of Arab structures we saw, where a simple pointed barrel vault was employed, these have a more sophisticated crown - in this case, a kind of pointed half-dome.

Mausolea plan and section, Kharraghan, Iran 1067-68 and 1093

The round towers at the corners of the structure are buttressing devices to stablilize the dome. Originally the dome was double-shelled.